Tribute
Bruce
Cook, who established AuthorMe some years ago, has in no way been a
party to this article in its content or sentiments. Indeed he is
reluctant to place the article at AuthorMe for reasons of modesty and
professionalism and does so reluctantly and only because of the pressure
of those Editors and Writers who have assembled the work and insist that
he take some public credit for his efforts.
Yours Faithfully,
Kenneth Mulholland. Australian Editor.
On behalf of Editors and Writers at AuthorMe.
I may be contacted at any time via email at
balloons_210a@optusnet.com.au
Greetings Bruce,
This email is being sent to you
because you have been chosen to be the "Man of the Year", in
the eyes and hearts of your Author Me family, because you
have touched so many of us through out the years and have
left a positive mark on all of our lives.
We, the writers and editors want to
stop and give you the recognition that you deserve because
it is well over due.
Please except this little token of
our appreciation that we are presenting to you from your
Authorme family and friends. We want to share with you and
the authorme readers our feelings, our thoughts of a
wonderful, generous human being, our "Man of the Year," Mr.
Bruce Cook, because you deserve it.
We; Ken, Adam and myself are also
hoping that you will post this tribute on the website. We
will not take no for an answer!!!!!! You do not want to have
to deal with the three Musketeers; Adam, Ken and Winona.
By posting this tribute you will
be adding icing to the cake, your cake by the way, with all
the free cups of coffee that your big heart desires.
This is a tribute that deserves to
be published.
Hope you enjoy,
All the best,
Winona and Friends
This Tribute Goes
Out
To:
BRUCE
COOK
Thank you from all of us, from your
Authorme family
because
you are “The
Man of the Year!”
'Dear Bruce, knowing that you are a modest man
and might be tempted not to put this up on A/Me, here are two very
valid reasons why you should do so. The first is that if you don't
then you will have a number of rather disappointed and very annoyed
Editors and Writers. After all, they went to some trouble to get
this tribute together.
The second and much more important reason is that it should be published at A/Me as a sign of solidarity and to show all, Readers, Writers and Editors what A/Me is all about.
And that is 'FAMILY.'
Best wishes,
Lyn Fox. (Hollywood
The second and much more important reason is that it should be published at A/Me as a sign of solidarity and to show all, Readers, Writers and Editors what A/Me is all about.
And that is 'FAMILY.'
Best wishes,
Lyn Fox. (
A Missionary to Writers.
From Adam Smith: What I can do is add my perspective. I got involved with Bruce just about three years ago. I had written something that was important to me, and I wanted to share it with others and get some feedback. After a little research, I recognized, like many writers before me, that Authorme.com was the perfect forum to see my aims fulfilled.
It was only after my work was posted that I began to appreciate the tremendous effort behind the website. I speak here of the maintenance and expansion of the web site itself, including the discussion forums and statistical data; the unceasing addition of new stories and poems; the ongoing effort to build and maintain a devoted pool of editors--just to name a few. I learned that Authorme.com is, essentially, the product of a single man's vision and selfless desire to help Emerging Writers; and more, that Bruce makes no money out of it and, in fact, has to put his own money into the site to keep it going.
Realizing what Bruce was doing was a major--actually, the decisive--influence on my own decision to give my time and knowledge to help others as well. And being a part of an organization that systematically lends such incredible support on a volunteer basis has been an amazing experience. It has opened my eyes to all kinds of works and life perspectives that I never would have been exposed to, and it allowed me to develop friendships with some truly wonderful people. (Ken and Nona--you don't have to guess who I'm talking about!)
So, all of that having been said, it is my hope that I can continue to pull an oar on this galley. With Bruce at the helm, I am confident that this big ship is constantly moving in the right direction. I intend to keep rowing. - Adam
And from Winona Rasheed:
For myself, I can truly say, where would I be? Bruce has opened doors for me that at one point in my life was only a dream, a thought. But, with him believing in me, even though we have never met, and that in itself is something, he gave me the opportunity to excel and be who I am at this moment, whereas, before Authorme/Bruce, I was just Winona chasing after a dream, from just a writer to editor, to Managing Editor and now a freelancer/entrepreneur with my own business. All this came from Bruce/Authorme. So, yes indeed my hat goes off to this generous man and I am so very proud to be his right or left hand person because he has lifted me and help make me who I am today. And what is more......I bet he doesn't even know that. Knowing Bruce, he'd say he didn't do anything. But he did.......he really did.
Tribute to Bruce
"I have known what joy it is to be published without being subjected to the
unreliable caprices of a greedy publisher - like many of us writers in this
part of the world have at one time or the other. The gap filled by AuthorMe
is thus one large enough to make all we authors proud. So Bruce when I say
today, in tribute to your innovation and hard work, that you have made a very
great impact on many lives than you would ever know, I am only being honest.
Today, I want you to think of how many of us are grateful, and will remain
so, especially for your enthusiasm even at points of inconvenience, so you
can bask - if only for this day and days to come - in the joy of that
fulfilment. I, for one, am grateful for what AuthorMe has come to represent,
and will continue to represent as long as we will remain here to keep it
alive and growing. Thank you again."
Kola Tubosun
www.tubosun.de
"I have known what joy it is to be published without being subjected to the
unreliable caprices of a greedy publisher - like many of us writers in this
part of the world have at one time or the other. The gap filled by AuthorMe
is thus one large enough to make all we authors proud. So Bruce when I say
today, in tribute to your innovation and hard work, that you have made a very
great impact on many lives than you would ever know, I am only being honest.
Today, I want you to think of how many of us are grateful, and will remain
so, especially for your enthusiasm even at points of inconvenience, so you
can bask - if only for this day and days to come - in the joy of that
fulfilment. I, for one, am grateful for what AuthorMe has come to represent,
and will continue to represent as long as we will remain here to keep it
alive and growing. Thank you again."
Kola Tubosun
www.tubosun.de
From: "george chun fat" <george_chun_fat@hotmail.com>
To: winonarasheed52@hotmail.com
Subject: Bruce Cook
Date: Thu,
>Bruce Cook helped me get started in the writing business. Because
>of his support I got my book Intuitive Happiness published. He has
>always been very kind to my emails of books for his site. Bruce
>Cook is a philanthropist, idealist, gentleman, and very charitable.
>More men should be the quality that is the man Bruce Cook.
A Thank You for Bruce
By Doug Francescon
Author of "Old GIs And Sleeping Dragons"
After four years work it was finished, my book. So, now what? I tried what seamed logical by searching the Internet, reading books written to explain how one gets published, and talked to those who I assumed, by their experience were qualified to help. This all provided basic information and helped me avoid some expensive pit falls, but did nothing to place my work before interested readers.
Then, I got lucky. I found AuthorMe.com and a remarkable man, Dr. Bruce Cook. The encounter was, for me, exactly what I needed. My new friend, Bruce, took the time to find an editor who made me see my book through a readers eyes. He stayed in close contact with me through all of the re-writes with enough advice and encouragement to keep me on track. He explained to me what to expect from the self-publishing experience, and gave me the perspective I needed to truly make the most of my first attempt at serious writing.
He did all this for me as I am sure he has for countless others out of kindness and true desire to simply help one needed it. We have never met. At our first e-mail encounter I is was just another "writer rookie", mired in the maze of ISBN numbers, copyright applications, and web sites looking for fast bucks. Bruce brought me out of that maze, and gave me a chance to display my work.
As I look at the size and complexity of AuthorMe.com I’m amazed by the amount of work it must take to keep the site current, interesting, and truly effective, and at the same time stay interested in individuals like me. My hat is truly off to one of the most amazing men I’ve ever encountered, my friend, Dr. Bruce Cook.
From: john dateme <ashcity2000@yahoo.com>
Date: Sat,
Thanks a mil for the secret. Ugh! thats what I can say about death,
especially of a loved one. For me Bruce and Authorme means the voice
of a one in the wilderness, the one who gives people like me the
chance to tell the world what I feel. Bruce has given me a whole new
understanding of literature on the web. I sympathize with him a lot
and I pray for comfort in times like this for him to weather the
storms of loss and despair.
John Dateme.
From: Ehichoya Ekozilen <jekozilen@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2005 00:25:29 -0800 (PST)
Over the years I have realised that people, too often, are unwilling to give you opportunities if you are not already the large shining star they see when they look up at the firmament at night. I thank Dr Bruce Cook for giving me this opportunity.
Ehichoya Ekozilen
Editor, AuthorMe.com
Discovering a new world
by Tinashe Mushakavanhu
I first met Jackie Batanda, at the 2004 edition of the Zimbabwe International Book Fair.
Her name had been flying in the news. She had just received a special commendation in the Caine Prize, together with Charles Mungoshi for her story 'Remember Atita' published by AuthorMe. We became instant friends. We talked writing and shared ideas. Coincidentally, we were both participants of the Crossing Borders Creative Writing project.
After the week-long Book Fair, I was so eager to read Jackie's story. I discovered other young writers; Monica Arac de Nyeko, Doreen Baingana and many more names. These were young writers with genuine talent, the future of African writing was in good hands.
With the click of a button, I discovered a whole new world of writing on the Authour Me website. Writing tips, engaging essays on the creative process and advice for the young writers, AuthorMe was a worldwide network for young writers from across the world, which brought a large international audience that enjoyed reading works from Emerging Writers.
I decided to join the Author Me network as an Editor. Bruce 'Cook and his dedicated editorial team took me aboard. Correspondence with Bruce was motivational. Serving as an AuthorMe editor has been a process of self discovery and growth. As a young editor at 22, I am not discouraged.
I first met Jackie Batanda, at the 2004 edition of the Zimbabwe International Book Fair.
Her name had been flying in the news. She had just received a special commendation in the Caine Prize, together with Charles Mungoshi for her story 'Remember Atita' published by AuthorMe. We became instant friends. We talked writing and shared ideas. Coincidentally, we were both participants of the Crossing Borders Creative Writing project.
After the week-long Book Fair, I was so eager to read Jackie's story. I discovered other young writers; Monica Arac de Nyeko, Doreen Baingana and many more names. These were young writers with genuine talent, the future of African writing was in good hands.
With the click of a button, I discovered a whole new world of writing on the Authour Me website. Writing tips, engaging essays on the creative process and advice for the young writers, AuthorMe was a worldwide network for young writers from across the world, which brought a large international audience that enjoyed reading works from Emerging Writers.
I decided to join the Author Me network as an Editor. Bruce 'Cook and his dedicated editorial team took me aboard. Correspondence with Bruce was motivational. Serving as an AuthorMe editor has been a process of self discovery and growth. As a young editor at 22, I am not discouraged.
I salute you my Friend.
Kennneth Mulholland.
Editor Authorme.
There are always those called to a cause. They come forward for many reasons.
They seek to enlighten, to educate, to free and to enable. It is to this last, that I believe a man like Bruce Cook has come.
To enable: To empower, to make able, to strengthen, to supply with means, opportunities. To make possible.
To make possible.
Now that's a big statement. And it can apply to all kinds of activities and pursuits.
In this instance it applies to writing, to the conveying of thoughts and ideas and ideals and so much more that only the scope of vivid imagination can define and express.
Into this new era, the age of the Internet and the worldly connections it brings, comes a man, and with him he brings a vision and a faith. This is a faith not only founded in his past, in all the other pursuits of a varied and sometimes daunting life. It is a faith predicated upon the foundations laid before him by his Father and Mother, based deeply on simple beliefs and homilies that have profound ramifications and honest, easy applications:
'Treat each other well. As you expect to be treated.'
'Listen as well as speak. And Learn from the experience.'
'Make allowances. Others will try to meet you half way.'
'Do not turn away from those who seek your aid. Give them something, some little piece of yourself.'
'Seek to expand your horizon. Communication is paramount.'
'Never give in or give up. Dedication is admirable, especially when you know that you are on the right track.'
'If you cannot overcome the obstacle, go around it.' (Later you can sneak up on it, if it's still there.)
'Be available all of the time.' (This is a virtue that I am sure his family don't always agree with.)
'Never beat down those who might oppose your thoughts. Try to see their point of view.'
The above are just a few of the virtues of Author Me's originator. (He has plenty more in reserve.)
To the end of creating Author Me he is quite an understated, underestimated, almost invisible human being. What he seeks to achieve is something outside of himself. It is a goal in itself that does not require the Big Presence of a figure head, at least, I suspect, in his own estimation. Bruce Cook seems happiest in the company of his own family, and yet he still has a yearning to continue his quest, laid out before him by his Father, and I believe, sanctioned by his Mother.
In the passing of the last few weeks came the passing of his Mother and Bruce, never in denial, continues to steadily work on for the good of AuthorMe and all those Writers, Editors and Readers who contribute.
His family about him, give their support, and it is only fitting that others such as we, his extended family, do the same.
Author Me, the website based on the encouragement, the enabling and empowerment of free writers around the world is dedicated to the memory of Bruce Cook's Father and now, I feel sure, to the memory of his Mother.
Author Me is an open page with minimal restrictions. Writers need no qualifications other than their desire to write and to see their work exposed. Readers likewise are free to select, to come and go, at will.
With the foundation of this site, in an age only dreamt of by those gone before us, we see a real and fundamental beginning to a time of communication where people of all kinds, in places so far and wide around the world we call Earth, can converse.
This is truly the beginning of something greater than an individual.
And yet it took a single man of vision.
Will Author Me continue into the future?
Who can say?
Who can foretell what will come in the next ten, twenty or fifty years?
What we know now is this: here is a man prepared to do what he can to maintain his website for the enablement of current writers who come from all over the globe with their tales of fantasy and fiction, dereliction, poverty, disease, famine and death, war and upheaval, love and hate and truth and lies, sorrow and sincerity and triumph.
What more can be said than to raise our voices, to pay homage to a singular man.
Bruce Cook.
Thank you for the privilege, the empowerment that makes it possible for each and every one of us to contribute a part of ourselves through Author Me.
The Author Me Family.
